Liberal Democrat MP suspended after arrest

Cameron Thomas, the Liberal Democrat MP for Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire, was arrested on suspicion of assault and controlling and coercive behaviour, the BBC reports. He was taken into custody on Wednesday night and released on police bail.

The Liberal Democrats responded quickly. The party suspended Thomas's whip, which is the parliamentary party's disciplinary tool — a suspension means he now sits in the Commons as an independent MP rather than a party member. This does not remove him from Parliament or trigger a by-election. He remains Tewkesbury's elected MP unless he resigns, is disqualified, or voters trigger a rare recall process against him.

Controlling and coercive behaviour became a criminal offence in 2015 under the Serious Crime Act. It typically covers a pattern of psychological or physical abuse within an intimate or family relationship, and carries a maximum sentence of five years. Arrest on suspicion does not mean Thomas has been charged or convicted — he is presumed innocent.

The speed of the party's decision reflects how Westminster has tightened its approach to misconduct over recent years, following several high-profile scandals. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has previously spoken out strongly on standards in Parliament, which made the suspension more or less inevitable both as a matter of institutional discipline and political necessity.

Tewkesbury is traditionally strong ground for the Liberal Democrats, particularly across the South West where they have won significant new seats recently. The suspension is unlikely to change the mathematics of which party controls the Commons — the Lib Dems' parliamentary numbers are not under threat. But Thomas's name now joins a growing list of MPs across all parties whose conduct has become a police matter rather than something for the party whips to handle alone.

Thomas has made no public statement. Any police bail conditions have not been disclosed.